


Cause I got issues but you got them too

by notjustasoapstan



Category: EastEnders (TV)
Genre: F/M, crack ship? maybe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-03-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:20:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22469293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notjustasoapstan/pseuds/notjustasoapstan
Summary: Just a little something about how great these two would be together cause turns out Eastenders can read my mind.
Relationships: Dotty Cotton/Vinny Panesar
Comments: 1
Kudos: 6





	1. We were strangers in the night

**Author's Note:**

> This just happened to become a fic, I guess. I know it's a bit of a slow start but I hope you like it!

“Another one, Mick.” Dotty sets her empty glass on the bar and looks around the pub. As she waits for Mick to make her another gin tonic, she lets her gaze wander over the other customers. Some lonely guys at the bar, a few well-known faces scattered about, like the Slaters, just a normal Wednesday night.

For her, this usually meant sitting alone at the Vic while the Fowlers are having a cozy family night on the couch. Sometimes Dotty almost envied them but this feeling mostly subsided after a few drinks and a little flirt. However, today the guys seemed exceptionally bleak in here. From the corner of her eye, she could see Whitney entering the pub with Chantelle in tow who gave her a quick wave that she returned. But Whitney didn't even seem to register her as she was too busy ordering drinks from Tina across the bar.

“There ya go, luv. Cheers.” Mick sets the drink in front of her and turns around to take Kat’s order. 

Dotty tried to hurry back to her table unseen, not so keen on Whitney and Chantelle’s company. She’d rather have a quiet night than get stuck with those two chatterboxes. Suddenly, a push to her side set her off balance and she spilled her drink down herself. 

“Are you serious?!” She exclaimed furiously and turned around to see who had bumped into her.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry.” The guy apologized repeatedly, holding up his hands in defense. “I’ll buy you another one, of course.” Now he shoved a wad of napkins at her. She took them and padded at her black lacey dress which had already soaked up all the cold liquid. 

“You better! Who are ya anyway?” Dotty cocked an eyebrow and seized him up. He was her height, with black hair, a little blingy earring in his left ear, wearing a green and white tracksuit, bright white sneakers and headphones around his neck. Not bad-looking all around but not someone who she’d usually want to pay for her drinks.

“Vinny, hi!” He shot her a smile and stretched out his hand.

She faked a smile and pressed the napkins back into his hand, not in the mood for any small talk. “Alright, Vinny, go get me a new one and a bag of crisps while you’re at it.” 

Dotty sat down at her table and crossed her arms while she watched him make his way up to the bar. Thankfully, no one had noticed their little incident and her drink had not left any stains on one of her favourite dresses.

Her phone buzzed in her bag and she checked the message. It was one of her uni mates, Sam, asking about homework for a class tomorrow morning. Dotty was in no mood to answer having not done the homework herself, so she just left the message on read and shoved the phone back into her bag.

Her fingernails were tapping impatiently on the table while she pondered about calling it an early night. But the thought of having to overhear the Fowler's movie night while she sat alone in her room was even less appealing than sitting alone in the pub watching the locals. Just as she looked back into the direction of the bar, Vinny came walking up to the table with her drink and crisps. 

“Here you go, your gin tonic and your crisps.” He set it down before her, next to a pint of beer, and pulled up a chair.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Dotty snubbed at him.

Vinny looked at her quizzically and gestured to the pint sitting on the table. “I’m having a drink.”

“Yeah, but not with me." She narrowed her eyebrows and glared at him. "I know this is one of your pick up games, bumping into girls, buying them drinks and chatting them up but it ain’t working on me. So beat it.” She pushed his pint towards him and shot him an exasperated look. 

“Alright, I just wanted to be nice. No need to get angry. Again, I’m sorry.” He took his pint and headed towards the bar where he sat down next to an old miserable looking guy nursing his drink. 

Dotty busied herself with the pack of crisps, salt and vinegar, her favourite, but Vinny couldn’t have known that. As the evening went on, she watched Whitney animatedly talking to Chantelle who couldn’t stop staring at her phone with a worried look. At another table, Ben, Callum and Lola were having a laugh over Jay loudly telling a story about a crazy customer, at least from what Dotty picked up from the conversation. Just the usual familiar faces that always frequented the pub. 

The only unfamiliar face was Vinny, sitting at the bar, constantly checking his phone, seemingly waiting for someone who didn’t show up and looking progressively sadder. Not that Dotty cared. He probably deserved to be stood up by his date. Guys like him always had a second chick on the side or said things like “No, babe, kissing is not cheating.” Back in Wales, she had known a ton of guys like him. Dated some of them even. All of them shitty liars and even shittier boyfriends.

Ever since she was back in Walford, she had stayed away from guys and focused on uni. It was hard enough being Nick Cotton’s daughter around here, she didn’t need to have any more people judging her for what her father did, what he made her do. After the last sip of her drink, Dotty decided to call it a night and got up to leave. 

“Hey, Cotton!” Ben got up and approached her. Behind him, she could see Callum and Lola looking at her apologetically. 

“What, Mitchell?” She crossed her arms and looked at him expectantly, bracing for the inevitable dumb comment he would make.

“Don’t show up late for work tomorrow. I know your boss and he doesn’t excuse tardiness or a hangover.“ He smirked at her before turning around to the bar.

“Cheers, mate.” She snapped and headed out of the door, immediately feeling the cold and windy January night. Usually she would have loved to bite back with a snarky comment but she needed the job at the Arches, so she kept it to herself. 

As she hurried home, heels clicking on the asphalt, she could suddenly hear footsteps behind her and then someone calling her “Cotton!” It wasn’t Ben’s voice, not even he was so desperate for attention that he’d follow her outside just to have another jab at her. 

She could feel the person catching up to her and turned around angrily. “What do you want?” 

It was Vinny, jogging up to her, holding her black woolen scarf. “You forgot that.” He smiled empathetically. “I thought you’d be cold.”

“Thanks.” She snatched it from his hands and wound it around her neck. The scarf had been a Christmas present from her mum, the only person back in Wales who seemed to miss her. It even smelled a bit like her and not yet of Dot's cigarettes because Dotty liked to keep it close.

After a moment of awkward silence, Dotty shot Vinny a quick smile and turned back to head home. 

“Is your name really Cotton?” Vinny was not easy to get rid of, she had to give him that but not in a creepy way just in a naive annoying way like a little puppy. She figured she could take him out in a fight though. 

“No, it’s just my last name.” Dotty answered shortly and quickened her steps because it was still cold as fuck even with her scarf on.

“Shame, would have been a cute first name even though it doesn’t fit your whole…modern goth…aesthetic.” Vinny stumbled over the words but she could appreciate the effort to charm her.

“Wait til you hear my real first name.” She joked and after a short break she added. “It’s Dotty. That cute enough for ya?” She spit out the word "cute" like it was venom. 

“Awww, yeah, that suits you well." Vinny said, totally unfazed by her obvious disgust for the word.

"Don’t you wanna go back to the pub?” Dotty asked, suddenly eager to get out of this conversation. Vinny looked cold in his tracksuit, rubbing his hands together as he walked next to her, trying to keep up with her pace.

“Nah, my sister isn’t showing up anyway. Busy ignoring her family again.” He sounded defeated like it wasn’t the first time he tried to reach out to his sister. Not that Dotty knew anything about siblings or what to say to make him feel better, so she just nodded.

Just a couple of stepts later, she stopped at the front gate of Dot's house to search for her keys. “That’s me. See ya around, Vinny.” 

“Good night, Dotty Cotton. It has a nice ring to it really.” Vinny flashed her a smile before turning to cross the street.

When she opened the door, she stopped to listen for any noises from the living room but it seemed like the Fowler's family night was over. However, she could hear someone roaming around in the kitchen and the clatter of dishes. In an attempt to stay unnoticed, Dotty silently took off her coat and scarf and sneaked up the stairs to her room. Her patience for any social contact had long worn out for the night and the prospect of university and work tomorrow already put her into a foul mood.

Her little incident with Vinny passed her mind as she checked her dress for any stains from her drink. They really had both wasted their Wednesday nights at their local pub like some lonely losers. Maybe, just maybe, their little conversation just a few minutes ago was even the best thing about her night. She chuckled over her own pathetic thoughts and decided to turn in for the night. It was going to be a long day tomorrow. 


	2. You're faking a smile with a coffee to go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dotty has a stressful day as last night catches up to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 2! I hope you enjoy!

The next morning, Dotty still had some time before class to get a coffee at the cafe. On Wednesday nights, she never drinks enough to get a proper hangover the next day but her head was screaming for some coffeine anyway. After all, she still had to come up with an excuse why she didn’t do the homework due for today. Her professor was a sexist ass who thought women shouldn’t study engineering and she didn’t want to give him any validation.

"Heya, Dotty!" She heard as she walks up to the counter to order. Vinny was sitting at a table with none other than Keegan and Tiffany. He was smiling at her unfazed while the other two were visibly ignoring her.

She waved and turned around to order, trying to ignore the way Tiffany just rolled her eyes.

"You alright?" Vinny showed up and leaned on the counter next to her, still wearing his dumb smile that was brighter than the orange tracksuit he wears today.

"Yeah, fine. I gotta go. See ya!" Dotty grabbed her coffee and slipped out of the cafe without even looking at Keegan and Tiffany again. They probably couldn't wait to spill all her evils out to Vinny.

\--------

Uni had been a total bust today thanks to Wednesday-night-Dotty thinking she could get out handing in homework without actually coming up with a good excuse. So now-Dotty let out her anger over a failed assignment on a stuck bolt while loud music blared from the radio in the Arches. 

A flash of orange showed up in her line of sight and she looked up from her work under the hood of the car. 

"A cockroach in a sandwich. Sounds like something my brothers would do." Vinny set down two cups on the roof of the car and shot her an amused look. 

Dotty put down the wrench and rolled her eyes. "So they really told you about this, first thing?! Ugh, like they ain't done stuff like that for 50 quid." She wiped her greasy hands on her overalls and walked over to grab one of the cups. 

"50? We usually charge way more to get rid of roaches.” Vinny joked and took a sip from his cup, waiting for her to try her beverage too.

She smiled and lifted the lid off her cup, crinkling her nose. "Hot chocolate and whipped cream? What am I? Five?"

"Works wonders if you’re in a bad mood." Vinny held up his cup and presented it like an award. “Walford’s finest.” 

Dotty took a sip and tried not to let it show how good it was just to annoy him a little bit, before taking another. Little did Vinny know she actually had a bit of a sweet tooth and this was exactly what she needed right now. 

“Ha! You like it! For a moment I thought I should have asked the lady at the cafe for your usual instead.” Vinny broke out in a big smile and made a triumphant gesture.

She put down the cup and went back to the front of the car. “Now don’t get too cocky. It’s alright for a hot chocolate, if you never tasted the one I make.” 

“Is that an offer?” An even bigger smile spread on his face and Dotty started to wonder this boy always walked around smiling at everyone and how exhausting that must be.

“As if! How do I know you’re not some creepy stalker who randomly shows up at my work and follows me home?” She picked up the wrench and made a threatening gesture.

“Why is your mind always going to the darkest places?” He shook his head in amusement.

“I’m just being realistic. Just happened to a mate of mine. One day he was perfectly nice. The next he followed her around everywhere and even hit on me because he thought I looked like her. What a creep!” The memories of Leo in that dark alley calling her Whitney returned and she shivered a little.

“Shit, are you alright?” Vinny’s impression immediately changed into worry.

“Yeah, I am. But Whit is still scared of her own shadow.” Before she could go on, she saw Ben rounding the corner and mentally prepared for a dumb comment. “Am I paying you to stand here and chat, Cotton?” There it was. “What is he doing here?” 

Ben pointed his finger at Vinny who held up his hands in defense. “Just visiting, mate.”

“I ain’t ya mate. Didn’t I tell you lot to stay away from me and my business?” Ben stepped closer to Vinny, a threatening finger still in the air.

“Woah, alright. This has nothing to do with you. I was just talking to Dotty.” Vinny told Ben looking slightly confused. 

“Well, her break is over. So beat it.” Ben squared his shoulders and looked at him expectantly.

Vinny distanced himself from Ben and picked up his cup. “Okay, I’m going. See ya, Dotty.” 

“See ya.” She gave him and apologetic look and a little wave.

With that he was gone and Dotty went back to work, doing what she had to do: ignore Ben as he cursed trying to find something amongst the chaos on the desk. If she didn’t need this job, she would have stood up for Vinny and defended him against Ben who hated the Panesars for whatever reason. Or at least mocked Ben for being a chaotic mess.

Later, when she picked up her cup to throw it in the trash, she discovered that Vinny had scribbled his phone number on the bottom of it. Maybe she would get a chance to make it up to him soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Part 3 is in the works.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anniversary week took away all my attention but now I'm back with another chapter. I hope you enjoy!

It was a rainy and dark day in Walford and Dotty was studying in the cafe, waiting for Bex who would be joining her later after running some errands. 

When she looked up from her book, she could see Vinny entering with his mum in tow. At first, they argued for a bit before his mum walked up to the counter to order. 

Meanwhile Vinny turned around and noticed Dotty who had been watching the whole time. She acted like she hadn’t but it was too late now as Vinny was making his way to her table.

“Hi! You alright?” He greeted her with a smile as he stopped next to her table, hands buried in his jacket pockets.

“Yeah, you too, mummy’s little boy?” Dotty smiled sweetly and used her pen to point into the direction of the counter where Mrs. Panesar was chatting with Kathy.

Vinny looked over there and sighed. “Could be better. I’m actually taking my mum to the hospital.” 

Dotty’s face fell and she sucked in some air before blurting out: “Well, she doesn’t look sick to me.”

Of course, this wasn’t really what she meant but from the way Vinny flinched, Dotty knew she had messed up. “I mean, she looks on the mend. Must be all the pampering you guys are doing.” Still, Vinny looked miserable, standing there while playing with his rings, refusing to meet her eye.

“There is no mend. She got cancer.” He said quietly. 

Dotty got a sinking feeling in her stomach. “Shit, I’m sorry, Vinny.” She honestly was, knowing too well how it felt to lose a parent.

Before he could respond, his mother called over “I really have to leave now. You don’t have to come. I will take a taxi.” She hurried out the door, faster than he could refuse.

With another sigh and a defeated look on his face, Vinny slid into the booth opposite of her. An awkward silence set in, as he continued to play with his rings and Dotty aimlessly flipped some pages in her book. 

“She won’t even let us help her.” He shook his head, not meeting her eye.

“Isn’t your sister a doctor?” Dotty asked curiously, trying not to be too nosy.

Another sigh from Vinny. “Yeah, she’s a good doctor but even she can’t make mum let her help her.” 

“You really look up to her, huh?” This topic of family and siblings started to make Dotty feel like she was completely out of her depth.

“Yeah, sure. I mean she saves lives every day but only if they can still be saved.”

Dotty nodded and pressed her lips together, not really knowing what to say. She wasn’t big on empathy and all but she still hated seeing Vinny like this. Partly also because it made her uncomfortable having someone open up to her without being able to find something comforting to sat.

Instead, she moved her plate over to him. On it was an untouched sugar bun that she had bought herself as a treat during studying but she figured Vinny needed a sugary pick-me-up more than her right now.

He looked at her quizzically before understanding her gesture and smiling a bit. In return, she shot him a wink, smiling back.

“I’m sorry, by the way, for when Ben was giving you grief the other day. Didn’t know he was a racist cunt. Well I knew he was a cunt but you know.”

“Nah, it’s alright. I know he’s had it out with my brothers before we even moved here. I ain’t that bothered though.” Vinny tore a piece off the sticky bun and stuffed it in his mouth.

“What even happened? He seemed pretty pressed.” Now this was a story she was eager to hear so she closed her book and shoved it to the side. 

“As far as I know, he stole my brother’s car and sold it so they paid him a visit. They sorted it though, in their own messed up way. Just don’t cross that Lola girl, Jags said. Trust, me you don’t want to know.”

"What..." She started saying but then she saw Bex approaching the table out of the corner of her eye and straightened up.

“Sorry, I’m late. The shops were madness today.” Bex started unloading immediately. “But I see you found other company. I’m Bex. Hi!” She waved awkwardly at Vinny who just smiled back and introduced himself with a quick “Vinny.” before getting up and offering the seat to her.

Turning to Dotty he said: “I’m gonna leave you two to it. Bye!" Then he left without sparing them another look.

"What's up with him? Did I interrupt something?" Bex asked, raising an eyebrow.

Dotty shrugged and took a sip of her drink, before answering. "We were just chatting. Anyway, anything new with you?" 

While Bex went on a tangent about some rude lady at the store, Dotty aimlessly picked at the sticky bun Vinny had left. In her mind, she tried to piece together what she knew of him and how each time they met he seemed like a nice guy and they got along well until she said or did something wrong. Usually, it didn't bother her when she upset someone she barely knew but with Vinny it just didn't sit right with her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Part 4 is coming soon.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vinny's POV after leaving the cafe.

Vinny exited the cafe and turned towards the market, fumbling with the zipper of his jacket while the icy drizzle fell down from above. His conversation with Dotty was still fresh in his mind as he made his way over to the Vic. It wasn't the awkward silence or Dotty's rash words that had made him bolt, it was the way she had looked at him with pity mixed with a something he couldn't quite make out. It's what made him think that she somehow knew how helpless and dumb he felt about his family situation at the moment.

Just when he thought Dotty could be someone to just hang out with sometimes when he had to get out of the house, fed up with the fussing and the nagging and the mind games. But now she would belittle him like everyone else, walk on eggshells around him, and not dare to be honest with him. 

Before he could enter the Vic, he heard familiar voices and glanced down the street where Iqra and Ash walked out of the Ahmed's house, arm in arm, chatting loudly. It was nice seeing his sister so happy, especially since she had been so miserable and heartbroken when she was still living with them, but Vinny couldn't help a little bit of jealousy creeping up in him. 

When they were kids, Ash had basically been his best friend and the best bigger sister, defending him from his brothers and playing along with all the silly games he made up. Apart from a little row when he allegedly "stole" her girlfriend when they were teenagers, they never fought and couldn't go long without talking. That was until Ash started seeing this guy who was older than her and she barely came home anymore. Their mother was furious, taking every opportunity to bad mouth the guy and even threatened to kick Ash out.

It all changed when she discovered that Ash was pregnant but didn't want to keep the baby because of course this guy had cheated on her and she didn't want to raise it alone. All of what Vinny remembered from their fights was her mother pleading with Ash to keep the baby, to make her a grandmother, to keep up the good family name, but Ash didn't listen and disappeared. Now she seemed happier, more grown up and smart, well she had always been smart. He still looked up to her, Dotty got that right, but he also envied her.

All of this went through his mind as he aimlessly looked around the half-empty Vic, sitting at the bar with an untouched glass of coke. The overly-sweet taste of the sticky bun still lingered in his mouth and reminded him of Dotty's kind little gesture. 

"Heya, have you seen Iqra?" Habiba showed up next to him, propping her elbow up on the bar, while she let her gaze wander around the pub.

"She was just leaving your house with Ash like 5 minutes ago." Vinny responded, looking at her quizzically.

Habiba sighed and took out her phone while she complained. "She was supposed to meet me here but she's not responding to my messages." And before Vinny could think of something to say, she went on. "She probably left her phone at home again. Sometimes I want to tape it to her hand." 

"Siblings, eh?" It was the best Vinny could come up with given the situation. 

She settled down on the stool next to his and ordered an orange juice before facing him again. "Did Ash ditch you too?"

"Nah, I was saying in general. She also makes herself seem unavailable when we try to reach her." Vinny tried to explain.

Habiba nodded and checked her phone again but apparently with no success. "So...boring Saturday afternoon for both of us, huh?"

"What makes you think that?"

"Ehm, you're alone at the pub with a coke. No offence, but it doesn't scream fun to me and I thought you were the fun brother." She remarked with a raised eyebrow.

Vinny let out a chuckle and shook his head. "I was supposed to go to the hospital with mum. Not even a bit fun." 

"Supposed to? Did she bail on you like she did with Ash last time?" Habiba was more attentive than she let on, Vinny had to give her that.

"Yeah, we stopped at the cafe and I was just chatting to Dotty for like a minute and then she was gone." He tried to contain his annoyance about his mother.

Habiba still looked at him quizzically. "Dotty? Why would you talk to someone so...irritating?" 

"She's not irritating. Maybe a bit harsh but actually a lot more interesting..." Vinny saw a big knowing smile forming on Habiba's face. "What?"

"Interesting? Do you fancy her?!" She exclaimed excitedly. "Tell me everything!"

Vinny already regretted saying anything, quite sure that whatever he'd say next would definitely be gossiped about to his sister. "No, we're just mates. I just think people judge her too quickly even though they don't even know her."

His words didn't quite seem to hit the mark though as disappointment was written on Habiba's face. "I figured she was just a bit mean. That's all. You must know her better then?" Of course, she wouldn't budge so easily.

"Forget that I said anything." Vinny was now quite fed up with being questioned especially because he knew he wouldn't change Habiba's opinion on Dotty. Not that Dotty needed him to stand up for her. She probably couldn't care less of what people thought of her and that's what people found so irritating. However, Vinny admired it about her, mostly because he himself was more of a people-pleaser. 

Habiba had obviously gotten the message this time and just proceeded to make some small-talk until they both finished their drinks and went separate ways. 

On his way home, Vinny saw Bex and Dotty crossing the square while chatting actively but they didn't seem to notice him. Suddenly, he wished he could have stayed with Dotty at the cafe for a bit longer and maybe they could have gotten to know each other better. At least then he wouldn't feel like he owed her an explanation, like he did now. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was Part 4. I hope you liked it! Part 5 is still in the works and will be posted some time this week.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dotty is bad at apologizing and angsty-ish stuff ensues.

After a grim weekend, it finally started being sunny again and Dotty didn’t want to be stuck inside the house all afternoon so she decided to pay Bex a surprise visit. On Saturday, she had told Dotty all about her plans to go traveling soon but before that they still wanted to hang out as much as possible. 

As she made her way to number 41, she could see someone already leaning at the wall in front of the house. Getting closer, she noticed that the person was Vinny and he was busy typing on his phone. Only when she greeted him, he looked up in surprise.

“Hi. What are you doing here?” He asked and gestured to the house.

“I’m here to see Bex, why?” Dotty answered, a confused look on her face. She got the feeling that Vinny was still upset about their weird conversation on Saturday and that’s why he was being less cheery than usual.

“No one’s home. I already checked.” Vinny said defeatedly and pushed himself off the wall. It was obvious he didn’t even want to meet her eyes.

Instead of believing him, Dotty walked up to the door and knocked but no one answered. She turned around to see Vinny making his way down the sidewalk, slowed down by messing with his phone again. 

“You ain’t even gonna say goodbye?” Her disappointment over Bex’s absence now turned into annoyance about Vinny’s behavior since he seemed to pretend not to hear her.

Dotty let out an exasperated sigh and set off to catch up with him. When she did, he was already halfway across the square and she needed to take a hold of his shoulder to stop him. Before he could protest, she started blurting out the apology she had sat on for three days now.

“I’m sorry for being a bit...insensitive...” She frowned at the ill choice of words. “when we talked about your mum. Family is not exactly my favourite topic to talk about and you were upset about yours and I didn’t know what to do...” This really didn’t go as smoothly as she had planned. Instead of blabbering on, she opted for an apologetic smile. At least now Vinny was facing her to see it.

After a taking a moment to process, he said: “You’re really bad at this.” Amusement was swinging in his voice and a hint of a smile crept up on his face.

“Come on, Vinny.” She gave him a pleading look.

He nudged her arm with his elbow and winked. “Alright.” Then he motioned to the bench just a few feet away. “You wanna sit down and keep me company while I ignore my brother’s impatient texts to get Ash to come around?” 

Dotty nodded and they sat down to enjoy a little bit of the early spring sun while chatting about this and that. They were just joking about something when she spotted Sharon crossing the square with a screaming baby in her arms. Dotty’s smile vanished immediately as the tragic death of Denny came back into her mind. The events of the boat party were still fresh in her memory even though she had tried her best to distract herself from it. 

Vinny seemed to have followed her line of sight and his smile ceased as well. “Ain’t that...?” But his words stopped before he could finish the sentence as he saw the absent look on Dotty’s face. She was playing with her bracelet, snapping it on her wrist time and time again, something she did when she was on edge. In one moment her usually composed demeanor was gone and she didn’t even register her own words as they came out of her mouth. 

“When someone’s gone, they’re gone, you know?” 

Vinny nodded and bit his lip. “Are you alright?” He looked at her with worry on his face. 

But Dotty didn’t meet his eyes and instead stared at the ground, bouncing her foot while trying to keep herself from immediately running away. Ever since Denny’s death, she kept thinking about her father’s death five years ago. 

The memories from the day came rushing back to her. Her mum picking up the phone in the kitchen while Dotty was doing her homework at the table. Her shocked face as she put down the phone and turned to her daughter. It was hard enough back then but everything came rushing back to her just a few months ago when Sonia told her about grandma “helping” her dad when he overdosed. It had all been so messed up that just thinking about it still made Dotty’s head spin. 

“I didn’t even get to say goodbye or go to his funeral. Haven't even seen his grave.” She blurted out loud before she could stop the words. The pain was too big to keep them inside. 

Vinny scooted closer and tentatively put an arm around her. “Dotty, is this about your dad?” He asked with a slightly confused tone in his voice. 

“What do you know about my dad?” She snapped defensively. All the gossip about him had been eating away at her ever since she came back.

“Not much, just what I’ve heard people say.”

She knew what that meant. His words made a so familiar rage build up in her and she started pressing the star-shaped charm on her bracelet into her hand until it hurt. “Oh, how he ruined everyone’s lives or how my grandma offed him or what?” 

“What? No! I’m sorry. I didn’t even know that.” His tone was genuine without a trace of judgement or pity in it.

“Well, she did. And I...” Dotty blinked away some tears. “I know he was messed up but he was still my dad.” She felt like a dumb little child saying that but she couldn’t help herself. Sometimes she liked to think it should have been easier to let it go. She always thought that maybe if she was stronger, then the pain would have no way of getting to her.

His hand went to rest on hers and he slowly opened her fist to stop her from hurting herself with her bracelet. He breathed in as if to say something but seemed to decide against it. Instead, they just sat in silence while she tried to compose herself. It wasn’t often that she let herself be vulnerable because she was afraid of being judged for it. But Vinny didn’t judge her. He was just there, his arm still around her back, his hand on hers and his thumb drawing slow soothing circles into her palm.

She realized that not only did he get to see her like this instead of her usual confident self but she also got to see him this way. Not all cool and carefree but more sincere and quiet. It was different but somehow still so distinctly him.

Dotty noticed that her thoughts had shifted away from her grief and only let herself wallow in it for a moment longer, even if it was just because she enjoyed the comfortable silence between her and Vinny. Then she broke the moment, whatever moment they were having, and pretended to look at her phone. Vinny pulled away and cleared his throat. 

“Dotty...” He started, taking a break to choose his words carefully.

But instead of waiting for him to continue, she came up with an excuse on the spot. “I gotta go to work. Now.” She gave him an awkward half-smile and got up. “See ya!” And then she was off, walking into the direction of the Arches even though there was no work on for today. A quick look back showed her that a slightly bewildered Vinny was still sitting on the bench looking after her. 

She had followed her impulse to get away from emotional situations like this and not let herself be fully comfortable with it as usual, but somehow this time it was harder. There was some part of her that actually seeked out to be comforted and understood even though she didn’t allow herself to embrace it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope I can update more regularly soon.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a typically Friday night...or not.

It was a slow Friday evening at the Vic, a change from the usual drama going on, and Dotty, Bex and Vinny were seated at a table next to the entry, two rounds into their drinks already. Vinny had only ran into them by accident but was quickly convinced to join. Dotty poked at the slice of lemon in her drink with her straw and pulled a discontented face. "These blokes are so shit. Why do they even bother playing?" She motioned to the group of middle-aged guys who were occupying the dartboard, visibly drunk already.

Vinny chuckled and commented: "I could beat them in my sleep."

Dotty's eyes flicked to him. "You could? I could beat them with my eyes closed." 

"Come on guys, it's just a bit of fun. Not everything is a challenge, Dotty." Bex remarked and took a sip of her drink.

"Well...now it is." Dotty took a hair tie from her wrist and fastened a ponytail.

"What do you mean?" Bex asked as they watched her get up and round the table.

Dotty put her hands on her hips and looked at them expectantly. "We're playing or what?" 

"Now?!" Vinny questioned, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"You not up for a challenge, Panesar?" Dotty leaned over the table, her lips curled in a smirk and her blue eyes lit up.

Vinny's heart dropped and he needed a second to take her in. There was something about her just looming over him so confidently. The challenge in her eyes. The tone in her voice. He'd never seen a woman more stunning in his life.

Bex, who had observed their interaction quietly, nudged Vinny with her elbow to shake him from his stupor.

"Bring it on, Cotton." He got up and squared his shoulders.

A triumphant smile spread on her face and she turned around to make her way over to the other side of the room. Still a bit transfixed by her, Vinny just stayed there awkwardly staring after her until Bex stood up beside him and tugged at his arm.

The dart-playing party gave up their place reluctantly but in the end, Dotty managed to talk them around. She handed Vinny three darts and faced the board with a determined look on her face. 

"I'll take the scores." Bex announced and seated herself at the nearby table. Then, leaning closer so only Vinny could hear her, she said: "You don't want to play against her, when she gets like this." 

Vinny smirked and looked over at Dotty who was already focusing on the board in front of her. "I quite like a challenge." 

At first, they both played it cool but with every round the game got more heated until Dotty almost lost it about a missed dart. Vinny tried his hardest to ignore her intimidating stares and her snide comments about his throws. He knew she just tried to play dirty and he didn't expect any less of her. Lastly, it came down to the final round and the game was decided by one of his arrows missing the winning number 2 just barely.

Dotty whooped and broke out in the biggest smile, immediately making her way to the bar to order celebratory shots while Vinny and Bex sat back down at their table. Actually, Vinny didn't mind about losing so much now that he saw how happy she was. When she came back, she clapped him on the back and grinned at him triumphantly. "Well, I told you, I could do it." He couldn't help but grin back and nod admiringly. They clinked their shots together and downed them before settling back into the easy conversation they had before.

After finishing their drinks, they decided to leave the Vic and go somewhere more interesting which was of course Dotty's idea who was still buzzing from her win and wanted to celebrate. But Bex wanted to call it an early night so only the two of them remained.

"I know a new club just a few streets away. We could check it out?" Vinny suggested after they had said their goodbyes.

"Yeah, why not? Let's go have ourselves a proper little night out. I'm already wearing my lucky dress." Dotty faked striking a pose and laughed. They had walked a little chatting about their game until Dotty suddenly stopped under a street light and started roaming around in her purse.

"Erm, Dotty?" Vinny asked confused.

"Hm?" She tried to reapply her lipgloss in the tiny mirror of her powder compact. "It's a proper night out now. I gotta look the part." She shoved her make up back into her purse and then looked up to throw a big smile at him.

"You look stunning." The words he had been thinking the whole night were finally out. Yet, he didn't dare to catch her reaction.

Without even hesitating, she shot back. "Oh, I get it. One might get the idea you actually like me now." 

"So what if I do? Like you?" He asked hesitantly and crooked his head, now meeting her eyes to see that she had been observing him the whole time.

"Then you gotta prove it." Dotty bit her lip and raised an eyebrow, looking at him daringly. But she wasn’t prepared for what came next as he stepped closer to her with a determined look on his face. It was not how he had planned the night to go. At all. And yet, it felt right to be so close to her. To finally ease the tension that had been building up all night.

One of his hands rested on her shoulder while he softly cupped her face with the other one. His eyes searched hers for any sign of doubt before they dropped to her lips and he leaned his face closer to hers. He could feel his heartbeat quicken as she took hold of the lapels of his jacket and pulled him in. 

The first kiss was just a brush of lips before the second one turned into a perfect symphony of lips, hot breath and a bit of teeth. He could feel her smile into the kiss as he ran his thumb over her cheek. Never in a million years had he expected that kissing her would be _this_. But it was and he didn't want to make it stop. 

Vinny didn’t know how long they had stayed completely lost in each other when the ringing of a phone interrupted. They reluctantly broke their kiss and before he could search her face for any reaction to what they had just done, Vinny pulled out his phone and answered it. He stepped away from her and his face fell as he listened to his brother on the other side telling him to come home immediately. Something urgent about mum. He quickly ended the call and looked up from his phone to face her. “I’m sorry. I gotta run. Something happened with my mum.” And with that he sprinted across the street before Dotty could even say anything. So much for a night out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! The next part is coming very soon!


	7. Chapter 7

Saturday mornings were usually reserved for sleeping in, that was Dotty's rule and everyone knew it. However, today she broke her own rule, just like last night when she kissed Vinny. Not that she regretted it because while it was surprising, it had felt completely natural, like it was what they were supposed to be doing right then and there. The memories of it still fresh in her mind, she aimlessly scrolled through her phone.

She contemplated whether she should send another text after an 'Are you okay?', sent when she got home last night, and a 'Wanna talk?, sent well past 3 am when she woke up from a dream that was the continuation of last night, without the interrupting phone call. Vinny had still not answered her messages, not even read them, and Dotty got increasingly worried. 

Either he didn’t want anything to do with her after their kiss in which case ignoring her would a very fucked up way to show her, or something really bad happened with his mum and he just wanted to be left alone. However, Dotty needed answers because she lacked patience and hated being left in the dark, quite literally. Even if it meant paying the Panesar’s a visit to see what was going on which was exactly what she planned to do.

But as she entered the park in the middle of the square, she could see Vinny sitting on one of the benches. He looked small and lost, alone in the cold park, staring off into space. When she walked up to him, she noticed that he was aimlessly playing with his rings, nothing out of the ordinary for him, but no music was playing from the headphones around his neck like it usually would. Only when she stood right in front of him, he seemed to notice her presence but avoided looking into her eyes. 

Without greeting, she carefully sat down on the other side of the bench, crossing her arms, waiting for him to say something. But there was no cheeky greeting, not even the hint of a smile on his face or a look into her direction. Her earlier eagerness ceased as she watched him fold into himself, elbows on knees, the heels of his hands pressed into his face, still staring into nothing. He sighed and as she scooted closer, he wiped his sleeve over his eyes. 

There was no way Dotty could sit in the cold any longer and wait for him to talk to her. If he needed to avoid talking to her, he could at least do it in the warmth of her house. So she got up and pulled at his arm to follow her. For the first time today, he looked at her, all puffy-eyed and tired, before slowly getting up with another sigh. She slipped her hand into his, which was surprisingly warmer than hers, and guided him towards her house without much resistance.

“Hot chocolate?” She tried to put in a cheery smile, as she leaned on the kitchen counter. Vinny sat at the table, not looking up from his hands, playing with his rings. Dotty let out an exasperated noise and busied herself with the drinks. 

Only when she had sat down opposite of him, two cups of her special hot chocolate steaming on the table, he faced her again. 

“She lied.” He finally blurted out.

Dotty looked at him quizzically, not really understanding what he meant by that.

After a short moment he needed to compose himself, Vinny continued. “She lied about having cancer. Ash found out yesterday.”

Dotty raised her eyebrows and took a sip from her drink, not knowing what to say. Out of all the options, she had not even seen that one coming.

“That’s…wow.” She finally managed to say. “How did Ash find out?”

“She’s a doctor, Dotty. She’s smarter than any of us, apparently.” Vinny was back to staring at his hands that were clutching the mug on the table, but his drink was still untouched.

“You couldn’t have known. No one would even think about doing something so fucked up.” It was the only reassuring thing, she could come up with.

“I just…don’t understand why she did it. She said…” Vinny shook his head and wiped at his eyes where she could see tears glistening. “She said she was afraid of losing us, like she had lost Ash. She just wanted us all to be together again.” 

Dotty bit her lip, trying to think of something to say that could ease him but emotional conversations were not her strong suit. She had her fair share of family drama in her life, but it was all resolved screaming and shouting and ended with her alone crying in her room. But she hated seeing him like this, usually sunshine in person, sitting there in his grey tracksuit staring at his drink, looking like a kicked puppy. Anger bubbled up inside of her. She wondered how could his mother do something so fucked up but she pushed it down, focussing back on trying to help Vinny, instead of immediately wanting to give this woman a piece of her mind.

“I get it, you know. I wanted to see Ash again too. Be a family again like when we were all living together, thick as thieves, like we used to be. Especially after everything that happened with my dad.” Vinny finally took a sip of his drink, but grimaced and set down the mug. “Too much sugar.” 

Dotty was offended for a moment but decided to let the issue drop. There was no need for an argument over hot chocolate now. Instead, she asked: “How did your siblings react?”

“Kheerat tried to talk it out with her, but Jags holed himself up in his room. Ash just stormed off angrily after throwing around the papers proving that mum wasn’t sick. It was a mess so I just got out.” Vinny sighed again and, against his better judgement, took another drink. 

“And you? What did you do? Are you not angry? I know I would be.”

“I was. I actually smashed my phone on the ground.” Vinny took a battered and broken phone out of his pocket and set it on the table. So this is why he didn’t answer her message yet. Dotty regretted even thinking that he was ghosting her. “Iqra let me sleep on their couch and Ash was already gone when I woke up this morning. I get it, I don’t want to see my family right now either.” He explained further. 

“Maybe…” Dotty started but was interrupted by a knock on the door. “I gotta get that. Sonia is waiting for a delivery.” She excused herself and slipped out of the kitchen. But when she opened the door, Vinny’s brothers appeared on the other side. 

“Is he here?” Kheerat asked in his usual bossy voice, trying to sneak a look into the house behind her.

“What if he is? What do you want?” Dotty cocked her head and crossed her arms, glaring at him. There was no way she would let them talk Vinny into coming back home if he wasn’t clearly not ready to.

“We just want to talk.” Kheerat assured her, already motioning to step inside.

“No way. Vinny will come to you, if he wants to talk. I let him know you were here.” She said while closing the door into their faces, before Kheerat could even think of something else to say. 

As she turned back to the kitchen, Vinny stood there leaning in the doorway. He had clearly heard their conversation and a little amused smile was playing on his lips. “Didn’t think you would have it out with my brother.” He remarked, taken aback by how she had handled the situation. “I expected you to at least insult him.” 

“That is beneath me. Let them work for it.” She smiled back, relieved to find that Vinny was back to his old self, at least a little bit. 

Vinny stepped towards her until he was almost as close as last night. The memories of their kiss came sweeping back into her mind and she felt her heartbeat pick up as she braced herself before meeting his eyes. But the mood had changed and there was something different there than last night, not bad just different. He lifted his arms to pull her into a hug, resting his head on her shoulder. Dotty wasn't big on hugs but she couldn't deny Vinny the comfort, so she loped her arms around him too, taking in the embrace. They stood close for a long moment, until he shifted a bit and pressed a quick kiss to the side her head before saying into her ear “Thanks for everything.” 

She could feel goosebumps forming on her arms from his proximity, her heartbeat still going haywire, but she didn’t allow herself to stay so close any longer. Instead let her arms drop and awkwardly shuffled out of the hug. Trying not to let it show how confused she was, she gestured towards the living room. “Do you wanna watch some telly? You look like you could use a little lie down and some bad Saturday morning shows.” 

He seemed a bit surprised by her sudden change of mood at first but then he smiled again and nodded. They were still standing close, too close for Dotty to get her head straight for real. So she quickly made her way into the living room, sitting down on a couch with her feet up, busying herself with the remote control.

Vinny settled in on the other side of the couch, not even trying to argue with her choice of programme. And so they had a lazy Saturday with mindless tv and Chinese food from the delivery service until Vinny fell asleep curled up in a blanket. He didn’t even open his fortune cookie but Dotty fished hers from the table and cracked the hard shell. The little paper inside read: Let sunshine into your life.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe Dotty believes in fortune cookies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a lot longer than anticipated but here it is.

When Dotty woke up on the couch that night, Vinny was gone but he had left a note saying “Off to buy a new phone. Vinny x”. Next to it still sat his unopened fortune cookie but apart from that the table was clean. He must have cleaned up before he left. She groggily got up to check the kitchen where Sonia was in the middle of preparing dinner. “I ran into your friend when I got home. He was really nice, even cleaned up your food and all. Did ya have a nice date?” She asked while her eyes followed Dotty walking around the kitchen.

Dotty grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and closed it loudly. “It wasn’t a date. We were just having a lazy Saturday in.” She said defensively and made her way out of the kitchen, not in the mood for more interrogation from Sonia. Before going up into her room, she grabbed his note and unopened fortune cookie to take with her.

\------

Now it was Sunday afternoon and she met up with Vinny at the cafe to get him out of the house. Even through text, he had sounded defeated but the sight of him sitting slumped in his chair opposite of her was even worse. It was not a good look on him. There were bags under his eyes, no headphones around his neck and an absent expression on his face.

In an attempt to cheer him up, Dotty pulled his fortune cookie out of her bag and slid it over to him. “You left that one yesterday.” 

“Yeah, I wasn’t in the mood for any cheesy quotes. Just forget it.” He set it aside without a second glance.

“No, you gotta open it.” Her lips pulled into a pout as she looked at him expectantly.

He pulled a confused face and asked: “Do you believe in stuff like that? I didn’t think you were superstitious.” 

“No, of course not. It’s just a bit of fun.” One part of her actually enjoyed believing in the stupid messages from the tiny prepackaged cookies, but she didn't mention that.

“What did yours say then?” Vinny seemed to give into his curiousity even if it was just to play along to her trying to cheer him up. 

“Uhm…I got it here.” She pulled the little strip of paper out of her pocket. For some reason, she just didn’t want to get rid of it yet.

Vinny took it from her and read “Let sunshine into your life.” He shook his head in amusement and smiled brightly at her. Dotty couldn't help but think that he looked like bloody sunshine personified in that moment and it made her want to smile too. Her heart did a little jump and she had to look away to compose herself. 

Unfazed by her reaction, Vinny now cracked open his own cookie and read aloud: “Honesty is the key to happiness." His smile faded and he stuffed the cookie into his pocket. "How ironic." He added before busying himself with his phone.

A comfortable silence set in as Dotty let her gaze wander around the cafe while sipping on her coffee. She tried to think of something to lighten the mood again because she hated seeing him like this. It's what a good friend would do and that's what Vinny needed her to be right now. Nothing more, even though her mind kept replaying the small moment there definitely was more between them. They hadn't talked about Friday night and it already seemed ages ago with everything that had happened since then.

Vinny probably had a million other things on his mind, so she tried to avoid thinking of his lips on hers and his hand on her cheek. Maybe she wanted to kiss him again, she had to admit it to herself, but now was definitely not the time to bring up the topic. Even though Vinny had told her that he liked her, she still couldn't quite figure out if that was just the influence of too many drinks and a long game of darts. In any case, she wouldn't even know what to say or how to say it.

While she was still pondering about what to do, she spotted Jags entering the cafe and making his way towards them. "Hey, little bruv.” He slapped his hand on Vinny's back and smiled cheerfully.

“If Kheerat or mum sent you to talk to me, I ain’t interested.” Vinny didn't even bother to look up from his phone.

“Nah, chill out, man. I just wanted to check if you’re alright. You didn’t come home again last night.” Jags pulled out a chair and sat down next to his brother.

“Are you surprised? I ain’t exactly in the mood to see mum.” 

“Mum ain’t home, she left to stay with a mate for a couple of days.” The older brother explained.

Confusion showed up on Vinny's face before he asked: “Did Kheerat kick her out?”

“No, but..." Jags started saying but Vinny cut him off “Of course he didn’t. Well I ain’t coming home anyways.”

“Where are you staying? You all loved up with your new missus?” Jags wiggled his eyebrows at her and she shot him an evil look.

Vinny noticed her expression and said: “Nah, Iqra lets me stay on their couch.”

As if on queue, the Ahmed sisters showed up at the cafe, chattering animatedly. Iqra waved at Vinny but Habiba was too busy obviously flirting with Peter behind the counter. 

“Iqra's sister is well fit, right?” Jags remarked as he stared at her. 

Vinny only said “Yeah.” at the same time as Dotty spat out a “Stop being a creep.” Both brothers gave her puzzled looks. 

In order to get out of the awkward situation, Dotty decided to escape to the bathroom. She could handle Vinny being in a bad mood but seeing him acting like this with his brother somehow rubbed her the wrong way. When she came back, Jags was gone and Vinny was in conversation with Keegan and Tiff who sat at the table next to theirs. This boy really was friends with everyone. However, Dotty wasn't in the mood for anyone else joining in on what was supposed to be a nice afternoon for her and Vinny. 

“You alright?” He asked when she picked up her jacket and bag. 

“Yeah, I just forgot I had to do some homework for tomorrow. See ya!” She hurried out of the cafe, ignoring Vinny’s confused look and Tiff rolling her eyes. 

Her phone chimed as she reached her front door.

 **Vinny:** Did I say sumthing wrong? 

**Dotty:** No why?

 **Vinny:** Cause you just did a runner

 **Dotty:** I told ya I had homework

 **Vinny:** Yeah i know nvm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter that had been sitting unedited in my draft for a while. I hope you enjoy!

Ruby's was buzzing on this Friday night with loud music blaring from the speakers while colourful lights danced through the room. Vinny had invited Dotty to Ash’s birthday party and since Dotty remembered exactly what happened the last time they had planned on partying together, she had brought Bex along. However, her friend was less interested in keeping Dotty from making any drunk mistakes and more interested in making them herself as she had been at the bar for some time, letting a guy buy her drinks and chat her up.

It was quite fun though as Dotty had since joined the group of people dancing on the other side of the room. When the song changed into one she absolutely hated, she decided to take a break from dancing and scanned the room for Vinny, without intending to of course. She spotted him at the door next to his sister who seemed to argue with Kheerat. On the way to the club, Vinny had told her that his mum was back living with his brothers and of course they were not invited to Ash’s party. It seemed better not to get involved in this situation, so she made her way to the bar to check up on Bex. 

A while later, Dotty started to feel the exhaustion of a long day and a night with too much dancing and drinking. In contrast, Bex still seemed to have fun with their friends, not noticing her friend's change of mood. 

Dotty didn't want to ruin her fun, so she headed out for some fresh air but not without giving Bex a little heads up via text even if she might not read it any time soon. Outside, the fresh air was a nice change to the stuffy air inside and Dotty took some deep breaths to clear her head while she leaned on a lamppost. Now she clearly felt the stressful events of the day taking a toll on her. Maybe it was also the amount of alcohol she had drunk on an empty stomach. Something she usually tried to avoid but there was no time to eat something between work and getting ready to go out. 

The thought of going back inside started to become so unappealing to her that she decided to just call it an early night. An apologetic text to Bex later, she set out to walk home which posed a much bigger task than anticipated because her head was still feeling quite fuzzy and her high heels didn't exactly make walking any easier. Thankfully, home wasn't too far away and after a bit of struggle she finally found herself at the front door. She started roaming around in her small purse and cursing while trying to find her keys until heard a familiar voice saying her name. Her head snapped up and she could see Vinny approaching her from the sidewalk. 

"What are you doing here?" She asked him, still feeling around in her purse in search of the keys.

"I saw you disappear from the club and not come back in so I wanted to check on you. Did you get home alright?” Vinny explained, now standing in the light of the street lamp with his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, obviously. You can go back now. Have fun!" Dotty tried to sound enthusiastically even though she really didn't feel like it. Then she crouched down to empty out her purse on the front step, but her keys didn't magically turn up as she had hoped. 

"Dotty? What are you doing?" He gave her a concerned look and stepped closer.

She closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath before straightening up. "I can't find my keys. Forgot them when I left. There's no one home though and Bex is still at Ruby's." There was no way for her to hold back the frustration in her voice. The day had been too long and she was too tired for all of this.

"I can get them for you, if you want." Vinny offered without hesitation.

Dotty thought about it for a moment but there was no way she would make him go through the hassle and she just wanted to curl up and go to sleep instead of standing around in the cold. 

"No, I don't want to ruin her night.And it’s your sisters birthday...I just..." Her head was feeling empty so she just ended up shrugging her shoulders, looking defeated. 

"How about you come around to mine for a bit? At least you won't be cold." He suggested before adding: "No second thoughts though. It's just really damn cold."

Her mind didn't even go there because she was too beat, so Dotty just nodded and crouched down to stuff her things back into her purse. As she got up, her vision swam a bit and Vinny had to grab her arm to steady her. 

"Okay, I see. Let's get you inside." And so they made their way to his house, him walking close in case she stumbled or got dizzy again. 

They didn't talk until Vinny closed the door behind them and turned on the lights.

"You want a cuppa?" He asked, while Dotty was still taking off her coat.

She nodded and he went off to the kitchen to put on the kettle. Dotty plopped down on the sofa and looked around the living room. The soft cushions just enhanced her tiredness and she let her head lean back. 

A few moments later, Vinny set down two mugs on the coffee table and sat down on an arm chair. “You can crash here tonight if you want. No one’s gonna mind when they come back from the party all knackered.” He offered with a sympathetic look. “I still owe you anyway.” Vinny added in a small voice, almost inaudible if it wasn’t for the quietness of the room.

“Why?” Dotty asked confused, not remembering any favors he owed her.

Vinny avoided looking directly at her and instead picked up his mug slowly, as if he was scared to spill something. "Well..." he took a tentative sip. "You were just being such a good friend these days and..." Instead of finishing his sentence, he scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. 

“Oh my god, I didn’t know you were such a sap, Vinny Panesar!” Dotty exclaimed in shock and promptly had to shield herself from a pillow thrown at her face.

“And you’re such a cynic!” He yelled back, now smiling from ear to ear. 

“I take that as a compliment. Ta.” She laughed and launched the pillow back at him, almost knocking over the lamp next to him.

They continued their banter until Dotty almost couldn't finish a sentence without yawning. Vinny got up and handed her a blanket that she gratefully accepted and immediately pulled up to her chin. "We better get some sleep now." He killed the lights but before he could walk away, Dotty grabbed his arm to stop him. "Thanks, Vinny. I don't deserve you." She whispered, trying to sound as sincere as possible while her mind was already drifting off to sleep.

"Yes, you do." He whispered back but he could already feel her hand slipping away as she was falling asleep so he wasn't sure she even heard him. Maybe he didn't want her to hear it anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Updates will follow soon-ish.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Part 2 will be up soon!


End file.
